


muse

by thechongz



Category: IDOLiSH7 (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M, iori works in fonte chocolat, mitsuki makes an appearance, nagi also gets an honorary mention, photographer riku
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-18
Updated: 2020-09-18
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:35:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26529073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thechongz/pseuds/thechongz
Summary: Riku finds a muse in Iori.
Relationships: Nanase Riku/Izumi Iori
Comments: 6
Kudos: 54





	muse

**Author's Note:**

> i literally woke up, lay in bed for a while, and thought "photographer riku???" and thus this was born in less than 2 days lmao
> 
> pls enjoy

Riku studied the interior of the bakery curiously before his gaze landed on the person manning the counter, currently attending to a customer with a well-rehearsed smile on his face. It wasn’t anything at all like the smile Riku was used to seeing. It wasn’t Riku’s first time seeing Izumi Iori, either – the only reason he was currently in Fonte Chocolat was because he’d followed Iori here. 

The first time Riku had seen Iori was along the streets of Shibuya. He'd been heading home from school and quite literally run into the younger male. Iori had apologised, seeming to have been in a hurry, and went off in the direction Riku had come from, and the redhead had shrugged the incident off and continued on his way home. 

He'd seen Iori again barely a few days after that first incident, this time a little closer to his school and squatting down at a curb. Riku had watched from afar as Iori coaxed a kitten out from its hiding place and put a small bowl of food down, gingerly scratching its head while it ate. A gentle smile had made its way onto Iori’s face as he talked to the kitten; Riku had been too far away to hear what he'd said. 

Since then, Riku had made sure to pass by that same area at the same timing every day after school, even staying back on days that he ended earlier. There were some days that he didn’t get to see Iori, though, and Riku would end up finding the kitten and taking pictures of it. 

Seeing Iori and following him to Fonte Chocolat had been completely by chance. Riku had just finished a meeting with some clients from his photography work and had seen Iori across the street. He'd ended up following him, purely out of curiosity about what the younger did apart from feeding random stray kittens, and was now trying to figure out what he should order. 

Finally getting up from his seat, Riku grabbed his wallet and went to look at the desserts in the display case. “It’s my first time here, so can you recommend me anything?” Riku asked, looking over at Iori. It wasn’t his first time seeing Iori, but he’d always watched him from afar. It was only now that Riku was realising what a pretty colour Iori’s eyes were; grey, but also somewhat blue. He wondered what it’d be like to see Iori smile from up close. “Oh! Is the strawberry tart any good?” 

“I personally like the dark chocolate cake a lot,” Iori replied, gesturing to said cake. “The strawberry tart is good too, of course, but we also recently launched a new strawberry puff, if you like strawberry.” 

Riku hummed in thought and nodded, smiling brightly at Iori. “Alright, then one slice of chocolate cake and one strawberry puff please.” 

He didn’t miss the way Iori blinked at him in surprise before clearing his throat. “Would you like any drinks to go with that?” he asked, taking Riku’s desserts out and transferring them to a plate. When he noticed Riku frowning at the menu in contemplation, he added, “Would you like me to recommend something?” 

“Ah, it’s just that I’m not really a fan of coffee, and tea might taste bitter after eating something sweet... I can’t take cold drinks, either... and if I drink a hot chocolate, it might be too much chocolate...” 

Iori nodded in understanding. “There’s something I enjoy that isn’t exactly on the menu, but I can make it for you,” he suggested. Riku raised a curious brow. He was quite certain that he wasn’t imagining the way Iori flushed, ever so slightly, as he said, “Warm milk with honey.” 

“Can you make that for me, then?” Riku requested. “How much should I pay for it, though?” 

“I’ll just charge you for a hot chocolate,” Iori assured, keying Riku’s orders into the cash register. “That brings the total to 1,453yen. I'll prepare your drink now, so please hold on.” 

Riku did as told, preparing his money while Iori went about making his drink. “Sorry for the wait,” Iori said when he was done, barely three minutes later. He took the money from Riku, returned him the change, and bowed slightly. “Thank you very much.” 

“Thank you too, um... Iori!” Riku replied, glancing at Iori’s nametag. “The drink smells delicious!” 

This time, Riku most certainly was not imagining how Iori blushed. 

📷 📷 📷

When Riku next saw Iori feeding the kitten, he went up to him and tapped him on the shoulder. The action resulted in Iori jumping in shock and the kitten scampering off. 

Iori turned around, ready to tell whoever it was off, but the words died on his lips when he saw Riku’s sheepish expression. “Sorry about that,” Riku apologised, his gaze flicking to where the kitten was likely hiding. “You’re from Fonte Chocolat, right? Iori, was it?” 

Clearing his throat and wiping the frown off his face, Iori nodded. “Yes. I remember you from the other day. Did you enjoy the desserts?” 

“Very much! I also liked the drink a lot; it might become my regular drink there,” Riku laughed, holding a hand out. Iori’s responding smile was prettier than Riku had imagined it’d be. “I really wanted to thank you for the recommendations before I left, but there was a bit of a crowd and I didn’t want to get in your way. My name’s Nanase Riku.” 

“Izumi Iori, but you already knew that,” Iori replied, taking the proffered hand. “I don’t think the kitten will be coming back anytime soon, so I’d better get going.” 

“Are you going to work?” Riku asked curiously, waiting for Iori to get up before walking with him. He ignored the raised brow Iori sent his way, clearly wondering why someone he’d only met once was following him. If anything, Riku was amused by how Iori constantly gave himself away through his expressions – it was why Riku had taken an interest in him in the first place. 

After a few moments of Riku looking at him expectantly, Iori sighed. “Yes, I am.” 

Riku’s face lit up. “Great! I need to work on my projects somewhere, so I’ll go there too,” he declared. “If it’s okay with you, I want to drink warm milk with honey again!” 

“...right,” Iori muttered in response. The walk to Fonte Chocolat was at least another ten minutes and Iori didn’t see any way he could avoid conversation with the redhead. Riku certainly didn’t seem like the type to be quiet for that long. “What’re you studying, Nanase-san?” 

“I’m in my final year, taking a degree in media. Photography, to be specific,” Riku replied, holding his camera bag up to prove his point. “I freelance a bit on the side to build up my portfolio, too. Would you like to see some of the photos I’ve taken?” 

“Huh. I noticed you taking pictures of the desserts that day. And sure, I don’t see why not.” 

Riku pulled his camera out and looked through his camera roll, selecting one of the photos before handing it to Iori. It only took Iori a few seconds to recognise what he was looking at. “Isn’t this the kitten? Why do you have a photo of it?” 

Scratching the back of his neck, Riku laughed awkwardly. “I actually noticed you feeding that kitten since a few weeks back,” he admitted. “I usually pass by that area on my way home from school, but I started staying back until late afternoon in the hopes of seeing you again. Those photos are from the days you didn’t show up.” 

“Should I be worried that you’re stalking me?” Iori asked warily. “Do you do this often, Nanase-san?” 

“Wha- I’m not stalking you!” Riku defended. “I just... wait around to see if you’ll drop by to feed the kitten, then I go home. I didn’t follow you to Fonte Chocolat or anything! That was just a coincidence.” 

Iori sighed. “I’ll have to take your word for it. You didn’t take any photos of me, did you? That's an invasion of privacy.” 

“No, just the kitten. I don’t usually take photos of people, anyway,” Riku said with a shrug. He didn’t mention how he _really_ wanted to take photos of Iori’s many expressions; he didn’t want to risk coming off as more of a stalker than he already did. So many times, he’d thought about just snapping a photo or two of the younger, but Riku wasn’t lying when he said that the subjects of his photos were rarely humans. He’d also rather have the permission of the person he was taking a photo of. “Anyway, what’re you studying?” 

“Business administration, second year.” 

“And you work part-time to earn some allowance?” 

“You mean Fonte Chocolat?” Iori asked, receiving a nod. “It’s a family business. My brother and I are set to take over our parents after I graduate, so I work there to learn the ropes. My brother’s actually pretty much running the place already.” 

“So your future’s set? That's nice.” 

“It’s not that easy running a business,” the younger replied dryly. He glanced at Riku’s camera. “I’ve actually been thinking about expanding Fonte Chocolat’s exposure on social media. We have a page on most sites, but we don’t update all that often. Do you think it’d be possible for us to work together? We really need better pictures to appeal to teens, and my brother and I aren’t that great at photography.” 

Riku raised a brow, his lips quirking upwards into a smile. “You’re not worried about me being a stalker? If I agree to this, I’ll probably find out a lot more about you,” he pointed out teasingly. “What if I start looking for you at your school, too?” 

Iori made a face. “You know what? Forget I even mentioned it.” 

“Wait! I was just kidding!” Riku hurried to say. “It sounds fun, though I can’t say I’m very experienced with food photography. I also won’t do it for free, so we’d have to work something out and do up a contract.” 

“I wasn’t expecting you to do it for free or for exposure,” Iori said. “I’ll talk to my family about it.” 

“Can I get your contact details then?” 

Instead of replying, Iori simply held his hand out for Riku’s phone. Riku unlocked it and handed it over, looking at the screen as Iori keyed his number in and saved the contact as _Izumi Iori._ He sent a quick text to Iori once the phone was handed back to him. “Let me know what they say,” Riku said, pocketing his phone as they neared Fonte Chocolat. “If they agree to it, I’ll let you know my usual rates and we can discuss things from there.” Riku offered Iori a lopsided smile. “I'm not opposed to giving a special discount for you.” 

“Do you do this with all your potential clients, Nanase-san?” 

“No, just you,” Riku chuckled. “I’ll go and find a seat; can you make my drink first?” 

Pursing his lips, Iori replied, “Got it.” 

Then, before Riku entered the shop, he added, “...also, can you send me those photos of the kitten?” 

Riku laughed. “I’ll send them to you tonight.” 

📷 📷 📷

By the time three weeks had passed, Riku and Iori had exchanged many a text message, only a small handful of which were actually related to the photoshoot for Fonte Chocolat. 

Riku and Iori found out that while they _did_ actually go to the same university, their schools were on opposite ends of the campus. That didn’t stop Riku from meeting Iori after the younger was done with his classes and walking together with him to the curb to feed the kitten. They talked about their classes on the walk there, finding out more about each other every time. 

Riku also eventually asked Iori if it was alright to take photos of him. “Why?” Iori had asked. While he wasn’t against having his photos taken for special occasions, he wasn’t quite the type to have his photos taken on a regular basis. 

“You’re very expressive,” Riku had replied simply. “I find you fascinating.” 

The reply had earned him a very sceptical look. “Most people say my expression is stoic.” 

“Then they’re not looking at you properly enough.” 

After the fourth time of the elder’s pleading, the younger had begrudgingly given in; Riku’s camera roll was now flooded with photos of Iori from various angles and wearing various expressions. Iori was slowly getting used to the camera, now, and he no longer blushed whenever he noticed the camera directed at him. 

Riku had noticed the change in the younger’s attitude and started showing Iori some of the photos he liked, pointing out what exactly it was about the photo that he thought looked good. Sometimes it was the lighting, but most times it was the way Iori was smiling. Iori would playfully roll his eyes and retort with something sarcastic, but Riku could tell that he was just trying to hide his embarrassment. 

On days that Iori wouldn’t be going to feed the kitten, he always made sure to inform Riku beforehand. Riku wasn’t all too surprised to find out that Iori was the president of his club, and he’d go on ahead to Fonte Chocolat to wait for Iori to get there. 

Iori's older brother, Mitsuki, wasn’t oblivious to the new friend his brother had made; he got to know Riku better whenever the redhead was waiting for Iori and was rather pleased to know that someone was interested in his brother. Riku didn’t explicitly state his interest in Iori, per se, but it was obvious from the way he spoke about the younger Izumi. He also never denied liking Iori whenever Mitsuki teased him. 

The day of the photoshoot rolled around soon enough, and Riku waved to Iori when he spotted the latter leaning against the wall outside his studio on campus. “You’re early today,” Riku noted. He was usually the one who went to wait for Iori. “Did you not have anything to ask your professor?” 

Iori shrugged. “I can just email my questions to him,” he said. “Nii-san’s getting the pastries ready for the shoot and I don’t want to be late. The icing on the cupcakes can melt pretty quickly if we leave them out for too long.” 

“Right. We’re just taking some pictures for the social media homepage banners and the seasonal items today, right?” 

“Yeah,” Iori confirmed, “then we’ll monitor the response and see how we should proceed from there.” 

Riku hummed in thought, stuffing his hands into his pockets as he walked. “What if you don’t get any increased revenue from updating the photos on the sites?” he asked. “You won’t blame me, will you?” 

Iori shot Riku a sideways glance. “Why would we do that?” 

“I mean, the quality of the photos play a big role in showcasing the shop’s appeal,” Riku pointed out. “If I end up taking bad photos, people won’t be enticed to come. You guys won’t want to work with me anymore after that, right?” 

“Maybe, maybe not,” Iori replied. “Why’re you so worried about it suddenly, anyway?” 

“For one thing, my pride as a photographer is on the line. And, more importantly, we started talking regularly because of this photoshoot. Will you stop talking to me if we aren’t working together?” 

The younger’s brows furrowed. “You realise we’ve hardly talked about the photoshoot?” 

“Well, yeah...” 

“I’m not going to cut you off just because business at Fonte Chocolat doesn’t get better,” Iori assured with an exasperated chuckle. He was sure he hadn’t done or said anything to insinuate that he didn’t like talking to Riku. “I don’t have many people I talk to regularly; you’re the only person, outside of family and club members and project groupmates, whom I meet almost every day. Do you really think I’m going to suddenly stop talking to you because we won’t be working together for business?” 

A playful smile made its way onto Riku’s face. “So... you like talking to me?” 

As usual, Iori rolled his eyes. “Don’t be so full of yourself, Nanase-san,” he retorted. “Other people just think I’m too curt and difficult to interact with, so I don’t bother trying to get closer to them.” 

“And you bothered trying to get closer to me?” Riku continued teasingly. He relished the way Iori blushed whenever he was embarrassed; Riku thought it was incredibly adorable. “But I’m glad. I like hanging out with you too. It's not like I have that many close friends myself.” 

“Why’s that? You seem like the type who’d be popular in high school.” 

“I was hardly in school, so. I was in and out of the hospital until my third year of high school, and my brother was usually the one who caught me up on what I missed,” Riku explained. “My classmates didn’t get to know me very well because of that, and it didn’t help that I couldn’t do a lot of things with them. I once got a mild attack from eating a sundae, how lame is that?” 

Iori shook his head. “I don’t think it’s lame,” he said. “It’s not like you asked to be sick.” 

“Tell that to my ex-classmates,” Riku chuckled. “But if I wasn’t so sickly, I don’t think I’d have become a photographer, and I probably wouldn’t have met you. I guess things worked out, in a way.” 

A blush crept onto Iori’s face again. He steadfastly ignored it. “You said that you got interested in photography because of your brother, right?” he asked instead. 

“Yeah,” Riku confirmed with a nod. “When I was younger and in the hospital almost all the time, Tenn-nii asked our parents for a camera so that he could let me see what he did outside. The pictures he took weren’t all that good, but it was refreshing compared to the hospital room I was stuck in. I got to see things and places that I wasn’t able to see on my own. It made me realise what a great thing photography was. Plus, I think it’d be great if I could find someone I want to take photos for, just like how Tenn-nii used to take photos for me.” 

“That sounds nice,” Iori agreed, smiling softly. 

Riku wanted to reach for his camera, but he was sure he wouldn’t be quick enough to capture Iori’s expression. _One day..._ Riku thought. “I might already have found that someone, actually,” Riku admitted, biting back a smile when Iori whipped around to look at him in mild shock. Luckily for the redhead, they were just seconds away from Fonte Chocolat’s entrance. “We can continue this after the photoshoot; it looks like Mitsuki’s almost ready.” 

“A-ah, yeah...” Iori trailed off, trying his best to mask his disappointment. At what, he wasn’t sure he wanted to think about. “I’ll help him finish setting up.” 

📷 📷 📷

The photoshoot took a grand total of about two and a half hours, considerably longer than Iori had thought it would. Many of the photos that Riku wasn’t satisfied with looked fine to the Izumis, but they left it to his judgement regardless. 

Mitsuki had to replace quite a few cupcakes and puffs throughout the session; he brought them back out after Riku announced that he was done. “Thank you for your hard work!” Mitsuki exclaimed, setting the tray of slightly deformed pastries on an empty table. “I’ll clean up here. Riku and Iori, you two go sit down and clear those for me.” 

“It’ll be faster if I help with the cleaning up, nii-san,” Iori pointed out. Mitsuki shot him a look and shooed him to the other table. “Fine, I won’t help. Can I at least go and make drinks for all of us?” 

“Oh, that’s a good idea,” Mitsuki said. “Iced coffee for me.” 

“And my usual for me!” 

Iori nodded, heading to the counter to prepare their drinks. Riku sat down and started eating the food they’d used, humming appreciatively at the sweetness. Mitsuki glanced at Riku curiously and asked, in a quiet voice, “Are you ever going to make a move?” 

The question made Riku choke on the bite of cupcake he’d just taken, and Iori looked over in alarm. “Are you alright, Nanase-san?” he asked, looking ready to rush over. 

Riku held a hand out to stop Iori and managed a nod. “Just ate too quickly, that’s all,” he assured after he’d managed to swallow whatever was in his mouth. “I’m fine, really!” 

Iori didn’t look too convinced, but he nodded and resumed preparing their drinks. Riku waited until Iori’s attention was off him before looking back at Mitsuki. “I’m trying to find the right timing,” Riku grumbled, knowing better than to lie to Mitsuki. “I was actually thinking of asking him out after this.” 

“Iori’s never going to make the first move, so it’s all up to you,” Mitsuki reminded. “I haven’t seen Iori this happy in, honestly, forever. But he doesn’t have much experience with relationships and he gets hurt easily, so I’m watching you.” 

“I wouldn’t hurt him,” Riku assured, quickly dropping the conversation when he noticed Iori walking out from behind the counter. He smiled brightly when Iori handed him his cup of warm milk with honey, immediately taking a sip of it and wincing as it scalded his tongue. “Hot!” 

“You’re so careless, honestly,” Iori sighed, taking the seat across the table. “There’s no need to rush.” 

Riku chuckled sheepishly. “I can’t help it! The warm milk with honey Iori makes is the best.” 

“Hey, what about when I make it for you?” Mitsuki questioned jokingly. 

“Mitsuki’s is good too, of course! Iori's is just better!” 

“Yeah, yeah,” Mitsuki laughed, waving the matter off. “I don’t really care either way.” 

The elder went back to cleaning the area up, and Iori picked up a puff to eat as well. “Anyway,” Riku said, “I think I should be able to finish editing the photos by next weekend. Um... maybe we can meet for lunch somewhere in town? I'll bring my laptop and we can go over the photos while eating.” 

Riku hid a scowl as Mitsuki snickered silently behind Iori. He looked back at Iori and saw the younger looking slightly confused. “Why don’t you just come here? I work on the weekends too, you know that. It doesn’t make sense for me to take a weekend off.” 

“If we meet here, you wouldn’t be able to focus on the photos, right?” Riku asked, wondering how Iori could be so dense. _Mitsuki wasn’t kidding when he said that Iori isn’t experienced with relationships..._ Riku thought, biting back a smile. This, too, Riku thought was really cute. _I’m not any better than him though, I suppose._ “You’d have to attend to customers and you’d be distracted. Besides, there are other photos I want to show you.” 

Raising a brow, Iori asked, “Of what?” 

This time, it was Riku who was blushing. “Every time I see cats on the street, I take pictures of them to show you next time,” he admitted. “They’re different from the ones I send you on LINE, so... I mean, I suppose I could also just send those through LINE...” 

“You can take a day off,” Mitsuki offered. “I don’t mind. I’ll get Nagi to help me out.” 

“Weekends are so busy, though. Will Rokuya-san be able to handle things out here?” 

“He’s helped out many times already – I'm sure he’ll be alright.” 

“It doesn’t have to be the whole day!” Riku cut in. “Just the afternoon is fine. Or evening. Whichever.” 

Iori looked at Mitsuki sceptically, then back at Riku. “How about we just meet after school? I can probably spare some time and come to the shop a little later. It shouldn’t take too long to just look over some photos, right?” 

Mitsuki rolled his eyes and heaved a sigh. “He’s asking you out, Iori,” he said exasperatedly, picking the empty plates up and heading to the back. “I’m going to leave you two alone, but by the time I’m back out, you’d better have finished this discussion!” 

The shop was silent as the doors to the kitchen closed, and Iori looked at Riku with wide eyes. Both of them were rapidly turning red, and Riku made a choked sound as he buried his face in his hands. “And I thought I had things covered, too...” he groaned. “That was so pathetic.” 

Iori opened his mouth to speak but couldn’t figure out what to say, so he simply closed it again and stared blankly at Riku. The silence dragged on for nearly a minute before Riku peeked between his fingers at Iori. He thought of what Mitsuki had told him just moments ago: _Iori will never make the first move._

Clearing his throat awkwardly, Riku forced himself to sit upright. “Just like Mitsuki said, I’m asking you out on a date,” Riku clarified, his teeth worrying at his lower lip. “Earlier, on the way here, when I said that I might have already found someone I wanted to take photos for... I was referring to you, Iori. It’s kind of cheesy, and maybe a little clichéd, but you’re my muse. Or, at least, I think you are. Recently, whenever I take photos of anything, I find myself thinking of you. I also want to take many more pictures _of_ you and _with_ you.” 

Iori felt his cheeks burn. He briefly recalled the disappointment he’d felt right before they’d entered Fonte Chocolat – he hadn’t wanted to admit to himself that he liked Riku as more than a friend, and that he’d been disappointed that Riku could’ve possibly already had a romantic interest. He'd thought that maybe he’d read the signs wrongly, that the past several weeks of constant texting and meeting each other had purely been between normal friends. He wouldn’t have known any better; it wasn’t as if he’d ever been in a relationship. 

It felt good to know that his feelings weren’t one-sided, as embarrassing and cheesy as Riku’s confession was. He wondered how long Mitsuki had known and not told him. 

“I... I see,” he said, sounding lame even to himself. “That sounds great. Going out, I mean. I'd love to.” 

Riku let out the breath he hadn’t realised he’d been holding and smiled. “Right. It's a date!” 

Mirroring the redhead’s smile, Iori nodded. “It’s a date.” 

Mitsuki abruptly slammed the kitchen door open, as if he’d been eavesdropping. Iori was rather sure he’d been doing just that. “Congratulations are in order!” he exclaimed, walking over and patting Iori on the back. “My baby brother’s all grown up now. I said this earlier already, but I won’t forgive you if you hurt him!” 

Iori groaned in embarrassment as Riku held his hand up in a salute. “Yes sir!” 

**Author's Note:**

> I'll proofread it again later but pls do lmk if you spot any spelling/grammatical mistakes!! comments and kudos are also always appreciated <3
> 
> anw it was fun to take a break from working on the rikuio abo series for the first time in a long while!! the last time i wrote something not-rikuio abo was... 2yrs ago for hoshimegu? it's also been some time since i wrote something so quickly HAHAHHA. it was a nice change of pace~ and now it's time to go back to working on the next chapter of Daily Bumps--
> 
> pls do check my abo series if you like rikuio and/or aboverse! for those looking for angst, you can check out One Last Time :'D and of course there's the random few ioriku/rikuio oneshots scattered here and there hahaha. Thank you for reading~!
> 
> p.s. i'm very bad at endings orz


End file.
